The Erie Canal became the first major commercially successful connection between the East Coast and the Western Frontier, earning the name "Gateway to the West" and helping fan the flames of the Industrial Revolution. It also provided a critical supply line that helped the North win the Civil War, while the prosperity it brought to northern states contributed to better funding and supplies for the Union Army. The canal soon functioned as an "information superhighway," spreading ideas in ways likened to today's Internet, and communities along its route became centers of social reform, including the abolition of slavery and the women's rights movement. The canal towpath also served as one of the routes of the Underground Railroad.